Santa Maria del Carmine, Florence

This 2nd-century church is found in the Oltrarno. It was completely destroyed by fire, and rebuilt in the 18th Century by Ruggieri and then Mannaioni. The Brancacci Chapel is the most precious part remaining from the fire. It was frescoed by Masolino and Masaccio beginning in 1424 and was finished by Filippino Lippi after 1480. Inside, two particular scenes frescoed by Masaccio stand out: 'The payment of tribute' and the 'Purge from Paradise'. These constitute an example imitated throughout the Renaissance, especially in the ways in which naked bodies were studied at close quarters, both in their proportions and in their volumes. The chapel has a separate entrance where a minimal fee is applicable.